Got into MSU and Rutgers-Newark. I know Rutgers is ranked in 80 and MSU is a T4 however, based from the increasing prestige and the upward stats in their admitted students, I'm predicting MSU will become a top T2 school in the future (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Michigan_State_University_College_of_Law). If you compare MSU's LSAT/GPA it's ranked up there with the top T2s. Most Big 10 law schools are T1 or T2 as well. I'm planning to practice overseas and I feel school name recognition is very important and Michigan State is probably more recognized than Rutgers outside the US. By going to MSU I know I will be taking a big chance (like buying stocks) that the school will move up based on my research.With all that was said, I want to hear what you all have to say. What are your thoughts on MSU (going up, down?) or should I choose the school based on current rankings? Like I said, I'm going to practice oversea so locality of the school isn't an issue.

Logged

andrewje

MSU's bar passage rate for the July 2006 bar was 94% so they should definitely move up to at least tier 3 this year. Also, you're right that all Big Ten schools with a law school are ranked fairly high. I'd go with MSU. Did you just get accepted today??? I'm anxiously waiting for an acceptance from them (I hope) but I guess I'll have to wait until after Thanksgiving. Congrats!

If you're wanting to practice overseas, you might want to put some weight on the strength of their international law course offerings and faculty, possibly even looking at what summer overseas programs they might offer. Just an idea. I don't know anything about either school aside from where they're located.

Personally, I would go to Rutgers unless they offered you money that made it worth attending. A friend of mine has a scholarship that covers 75% of tuition, and she has her share of complaints. I doubt that MSU name recognition offers you an overwhelming advantage in the international arena, at least not one that is offset by attending school in the northeast. Their rankings will go up, but remember that everyone plays the rankings game, and MSU College of Law is still a private institution. It took Dickenson a while to crawl to its current ranking.

Also, your interests may very well change when you start law school. I started wanting to practice international law and I'm now a criminal defense convert.

That aside, while I have never visited Newark, I did live in East Lansing for four years. I really enjoyed it. And while I do not know what effort the College of Law makes with respect to international practice, MSU has an extensive international studies program. In absolute numbers, they send the most students abroad for study, I believe, and as part of my undergrad program I interned with the UN in Thailand. So lots of opportunities at the university level.